IIS Launches Flagship Swimming Programme in Partnership With Mizuho Bank

"Our aim is to see an Indian swimmer on the podium at the 2032 Olympics," said IIS founder Parth Jindal.

The Inspire Institute of Sport has announced that Mizuho Bank is set to support 30 high-potential swimmers, as part of the Mizuho High Performance Swimming Programme. The programme will be based at the IIS in Bellary, Karnataka. 

The Inspire Institute of Sport – India’s first privately funded High Performance Training Centre and India’s largest Olympic Sports development programme – provides 100% scholarships to over 800 talented athletes across centres located in Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Haryana and Manipur. IIS provides access to world class infrastructure, coaching, sports science support and an integrated academic curriculum, which focuses on holistic development of athletes in an effort to achieve glory for the nation. 

For an organisation as large as Mizuho Bank to choose to support the Inspire Institute of Sport is a matter of immense pride for all of us. It’s moments like these that put a spring in our step in our endeavour. Swimming has over 100 medals and is second only to Athletics in the number of medals a nation can win at the Olympics, and so for us to establish ourselves as a global sporting powerhouse, it is essential that we excel in the sport. Going by experience, it takes between seven and eight years for the success of a programme to show, and our aim is to see an Indian swimmer on the podium at the 2032 Olympics.

Parth Jindal, Founder of IIS

A leading global bank, Mizuho operates five branches and four legal entities in India - Mizuho Bank, Mizuho Securities, Mizuho Global Services and Mizuho Leasing. It has been present in India for 28 years and has over 1000 employees serving Japanese & non-Japanese clients. It will soon start its operations in GIFT city.  

Our Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives reflect our corporate values and our commitment towards having a positive impact on society. Our purpose is to ‘Proactively innovate together with our clients for a prosperous and sustainable future’. Our fundamental approach to all our activities is to operate responsibly. We are honoured to partner with IIS , who were our partner of choice for the first ever Sports CSR investment in India as we share their vision of developing and nurturing Indian talent to succeed in the world of international sports. As one of the youngest nations in the world with about 60% population being under the age of 28, we believe that India should claim its rightful place on the podium in this aspect too. Sports play a vital role in building essential skills like competitive mindset, resilience, discipline, team work etc., and we hope to inspire many others by shining a spotlight on the talented athletes from across the country.

Piyush Agarwal, Senior Managing Director & Head – Corporate & Institutional Banking (India)

The IIS Swimming Programme, launched in 2023, features two state-of-the-art pools, allowing swimmers access to its High Performance Center, Hostels and Learning Centre. Through the programme, the athletes are provided with technical coaching and competition exposure, coupled with support around sports science, strength & conditioning, nutrition, education, mental health, and residential facilities.

A truly global sport with over 160 nations in participation at the Olympiad, Swimming represents the second highest tally of medals available at the Olympic Games (after athletics). With as many as 111 medals up for grabs at Paris 2024, the Inspire Institute of Sport and Mizuho Bank recognise swimming as a sport where India must make great strides to be an Olympic nation.

 
Talented swimmers Aryan Nehra, Maana Patel, Kushagra Rawat, Ishaan Mehra, Astha Choudhury, Ashmitha Chandra and Bikram Changmai are among those part of the Mizuho High Performance Swimming Programme. The Inspire Institute of Sport’s expertise in swimming also extends to its satellite centre in Odisha, where over 4000 young swimmers are impacted through the ‘Learn to Swim’ programme, in partnership with the Odisha Government.

Responding to a question from The Quint about the challenges of finding rural talent in an urban sport like swimming, Parth Jindal said:

Swimming is indeed an urban sport. I believe it is also a very elitist sport where access to swimming pools is not easy. JSW is working with the government of Odisha, we have built a 50m swimming pool in every district of the state. Today, more than 6000 swimmers are swimming every day. It is also a life skill, because in certain circumstances, it can help in survival. We will go to each state and conduct trials for swimmers. We will also be leaning on the former swimming champions of our countries to recommend swimmers to us at the right age, because we want to ensure no talented swimmer loses us. Our message is – If you are serious about swimming, come to IIS. This is the place for you.

Parth Jindal, Founder of IIS